Key facts
- Kraken is in discussions to acquire a 15% stake in Aave Group.
- The proposed valuation for Aave Group is $385 million.
- The deal includes an investment of 35,000 ETH in exchange for AAVE tokens and equity.
- Aave is rebuilding after the KelpDAO exploit, which caused significant deposit withdrawals.
- Standard Chartered has initiated coverage of the AAVE token with a bullish price target.
- The AAVE token's market capitalization is more than three times the company's equity valuation.
Kraken is reportedly in negotiations to acquire a 15% stake in Aave Group, the company behind the decentralized finance protocol Aave, at a valuation of $385 million. The proposed deal involves Kraken investing 35,000 ETH, approximately $55 million, in exchange for 250,000 AAVE tokens valued at $20 million and a 15% common equity stake in Aave Group. This move by Kraken, a major cryptocurrency exchange, comes as Aave is working to recover from the KelpDAO exploit in April, which led to significant deposit withdrawals, though Aave's smart contracts remained secure.
This development coincides with a bullish outlook on the AAVE token from Standard Chartered, which initiated coverage with a price target suggesting substantial upside by the end of the decade. The valuation discrepancy between Aave Group's equity and the AAVE token's market capitalization is notable, with the token trading at over three times the company's equity valuation. This highlights a common theme in crypto, where the value distribution between the protocol's token and the operating company is a key consideration for investors.
In other crypto news, Story Protocol has rebranded as a data network and shifted its focus to AI training data after its IP token collapsed. Spark and Uniswap are collaborating to develop an FX layer for stablecoins. Separately, a Polymarket exploit led to the theft of $3 million in user assets. Bitcoin ETFs experienced significant net outflows of $692 million on Thursday, while ETH ETFs saw $82 million in outflows. SBI Holdings announced a $289 million deal to acquire Bitbank, aiming to create Japan's largest regulated crypto exchange. CoinEx has denied allegations of involvement in an Iranian sanctions-evasion scheme.